Events and Highlights

Upcoming Events

May 2008

The 2008 CACN Canadian Reality Tour

Next stops Regina, Saskatchewan on May 7th and Winnipeg, Manitoba on May 8th!

UL is a proud participant in the 2008 CACN CANADIAN REALITY TOUR, a cross-country educational initiative of the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network (CACN) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). The purpose of the tour is to raise awareness and to educate police, customs, prosecutors, regulatory personnel, student, consumers and other government officials about the serious problem of product counterfeiting and copyright piracy in Canada.

Presentations and meetings are organized in nine cities across Canada leading up to the 2008 International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference being hosted by the RCMP and INTERPOL in Halifax, Nova Scotia from June 24 to 26. The Reality Tour will visit Vancouver, Edmonton, Regina, Winnipeg, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Moncton and Charlottetown. Please visit www.CACN.ca for further information on the 2008 Reality Tour.

CACN Reality Tour Brochure
Tournée La contrefaçon

June 2008

Following on the huge success of the 2007 IP Crime Conference in Niagara Falls, Canada, INTERPOL and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in partnership with Underwriters Laboratories will be hosting the 2008 International Law Enforcement IP Crime Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada on June 24th, 25th and 26th, 2008. The event will be held at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel.

Past Events

April 2008

UL was a proud sponsor and supporter of the second Intellectual Property (IP) Crime Investigator's Seminar, co-hosted by INTERPOL and the Guardia di Finanzia, held in April 2008. The seminar attracted 40 mid-level law enforcement personnel from 32 countries on six continents. The seminar was held at Guardia di Finanzia's Scuola Polizia Tributaria (Police College) located in Ostia/Rome. The seminar focused on best practices for combating IP crime. Speakers from various law enforcement agencies and private organizations shared their IP enforcement experiences and successes.

Seminar attendees agreed that there is a marked increase in incidences of IP crime around the globe. Enforcement is problematic and similar challenges are shared across geographic regions. The participants will share the best practices and knowledge gained at the seminar with their respective agencies and fellow officers. INTERPOL remains committed to offering continued educational and operational support to all students.
On April 21-22, 2008, UL provided training at the United States Customs and Border Protection Port of Honolulu, Hawaii in conjunction with an International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC) Intellectual Property Rights seminar. Approximately a dozen intellectual property rights holders participated and offered customized training presentations to Customs Officers and Import Specialists. UL's Bob Crane focused his presentation on authentic UL Marks and label technology. He also provided tips to help Customs personnel identify electrical products bearing potentially counterfeit UL Marks. A total of three training sessions were conducted and attendees included Customs representatives from the seaport, mail, cargo and import specialist branches.
On March 17th, 2008 INTERPOL hosted the first Certification Industry Anti-Counterfeiting Summit at their Headquarters in Lyon, France. TheSummit was designed to discuss relevant issues surrounding counterfeit certification marks and examine possible solutions to combat the international trade in products bearing these illegal marks.

In preparation for the Summit, INTERPOL distributed a proposal for an operational enforcement plan called "Operation Overshock." Operation Overshock calls for a coordinated 18-month criminal enforcement initiative to systematically target groups that deal in products bearing counterfeit certification marks.

UL, along with eleven other certification agencies, attended the Summit and formed a Certification Industry Steering Committee to work with INTERPOL in combating the international threat of counterfeit certification marks. An Operational Working Group was created and tasked with developing a strategic plan.

The Operational Working Group met in Rome on April 4th, and has united under the name Certification Industry Anti-Counterfeiting Initiative. Members of the working group agreed to collaborate on Operation Overshock and pledged the full cooperation of their respective organizations to support INTERPOL's efforts. The group will develop a core message for the initiative that will encompass the concept of working in partnership for public health and safety.
UL, and other members of the Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network (CACN), kicked off the cross-country 2008 Reality Tour with a launch in Vancouver, British Columbia on April 17th. Various member organizations from CACN took part in the launch and provided an overview of intellectual property (IP) crime and product identification training to attendees at the Vancouver sessions. Approximately 280 law enforcement, government personnel and high school students took part in the two Vancouver sessions. The event also garnered a great amount of attention from various media outlets. In addition to providing attendees with current information on IP crime, members of the Tour also displayed samples of counterfeited and pirated products that have been identified and seized throughout Canada. The product displays allowed participants to speak with representatives from the various CACN member companies and gave them the opportunity to gain "hands on" experience with the products in question.
UL, and other CACN members, finished the second leg of the 2008 Reality Tour cross-country training initiative on April 17th in Edmonton, Alberta. Various member organizations of CACN took part in the two Edmonton training sessions targeting law enforcement and government officials. As with the Vancouver launch, the participants were shocked to see that an ever-increasing number of counterfeited and pirated products were being found right in their in their own city.

The first training session in Edmonton provided law enforcement and other government personnel the opportunity to get "hands on" training from various CACN member companies on different types of products. Participants took part in open discussions that helped them to gain a better understanding of the true nature and threat of intellectual property crime. The second Edmonton training session was conducted privately and included representatives from UL, CACN, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and senior officials of the Alberta government.
On April 2, 2008, UL's Anti-Counterfeiting Operations participated in an International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC) training event for the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. Over 200 law enforcement personnel were in attendance. The presentation addressed the issues of counterfeiting to the law enforcement community in the Los Angeles area and included basic product identification training. The event provided an excellent opportunity to show our support of law enforcement initiatives targeting counterfeit products and to stress the potential hazards of electrical products bearing counterfeit UL Marks.
On April 10th, UL's Bob Crane instructed a graduate class of law students at the University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Law on the realities of day-to-day trademark enforcement. UNC's Director of the Intellectual Property Initiative and Adjunct Professor of Law, Deborah R. Gerhardt, wanted her students to benefit from a real world perspective of trademark enforcement. Samples of products bearing counterfeit trademarks were distributed to the class following a presentation covering topics relevant to intellectual property issues, including: trademark counterfeiting, brand authentication, enforcement and criminal investigations and cases.

March 2008

UL's Bob Crane conducted anti-counterfeiting training at the US Customs and Border Protection Ports of Sweetgrass, Montana; Denver, Colorado; and Salt Lake City, Utah. UL presented in collaboration with other stakeholders, including representatives from the Entertainment Software Association and the National IPR Coordination Center in Washington, DC. In attendance were Port Officers and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agents. UL's training focused on UL Mark identification and the potential hazards associated with electrical products bearing counterfeit UL Marks.

February 2008

UL Anti-Counterfeiting Operations was an industry invitee to the U.S. Department of Justice Computer Crime and Intellectual Property (CCIPs) meeting in Washington D.C. The meeting highlighted intellectual property cases prosecuted by the government in 2007, which represented a 92% increase over 2005. Also discussed were initiatives being led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) to prosecute cases in the counterfeiter's country of origin. UL's Andy Vourlos attended the meeting.
Training for U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP) officers in Newark, New Jersey and John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York, was conducted in conjunction with the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition (IACC). UL's Lou Verona and Andy Vourlos conducted the training sessions and also participated in a CBP Roundtable with representatives from the Office of Regulations & Rulings (ORR) and the Office of International Trade. A variety of topics were discussed, including: current trade enforcement policy, regulations governing bond issues for obtaining samples of suspect counterfeit products from Customs, and the Customs recordation process for trademarks.
UL's Anti-Counterfeiting Operations participated in the "Protection of Intellectual Property Rights" training seminar on February 12, 2008. The event was hosted by the North Carolina Secretary of State's Office and was held at the Charlotte, NC Police Department.

UL's Bob Crane was both a presenter and a panelist; topics focused on education, intellectual property issues on a global scale, intellectual property enforcement, and private-public sector partnerships to mitigate economic intellectual property risks. Attendees included representatives from US Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Charlotte Police Department.

January 2008

As a result of UL Anti-Counterfeiting Operation's training of fire marshals and arson investigators, the Westchester and Rockland County Fire Safety and Consumer Protection offices conducted sweeps of dollar and bargain stores throughout their New York state jurisdictions, searching for goods bearing counterfeit UL Marks. County investigators determined that several locations were selling counterfeit, potentially hazardous extension cords. The merchants later removed the cords from sale.
On January 22, 2008, UL's Bob Crane presented at an intellectual property training session held at the Myrtle Beach Police Department in Myrtle Beach, SC. The event was hosted by the South Carolina Department of Justice. Local law enforcement attendees learned about the hazards of electrical products bearing counterfeit UL Marks and how to identify authentic UL labels.

November 2007

UL's Anti-Counterfeiting Operations took part in the Intellectual Property Crime Training Seminar co-Hosted by Interpol and the Guardia di Finanza, in Rome, Italy. The seminar was conducted on November 12-16, 2007 and was held at the Scuola Polizia Tributaria, the Guardia di Finanza's state of the art police college.

UL's Warren MacInnis conducted anti-counterfeiting training and presented two case studies to the international law enforcement audience. Participants at the conference included law enforcement personnel from the United Kingdom, Italy, Bulgaria, Hungary, Israel, Paraguay, Singapore, Spain, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Argentina, Ukraine, Hong Kong and China.

Presentations focused on best practices and case studies that were designed to demonstrate the international scope of counterfeiting and piracy, and to provide participants with proven methods to combat these crimes. This was the first seminar of its type offered by Interpol; participants felt that the event was so valuable that there are plans to offer similar seminars in the coming months.

UL was a proud sponsor and supporter of this event and will continue its efforts to combat the threat of intellectual property crime.
UL'S Anti-Counterfeiting Operations participated in a training conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico on November 7-8, 2007. The Conference was hosted by the Regional Organized Crime Information Center (ROCIC) and over 300 law enforcement personnel were in attendance, including representatives from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and local police. The training addressed the potential hazards of counterfeit electrical products and ways to identify authentic vs. counterfeit UL Markings.
ACO was requested by the New York State Office of Fire Prevention & Control to conduct four workshops at their annual arson seminar, held at the NYS Academy of Fire Science in Montour Falls, NY. The workshops provided training on the potential hazards of counterfeit electrical products, and how to identify construction features of counterfeit products (e.g. undersized wiring, lack of markings, counterfeit labels).

October 2007

The Brooklyn Fire Marshal's office was extremely pleased with the presentation conducted earlier in the year and requested that ACO provide another anti-counterfeiting training class, this time to their 2nd graduating class of the year.

September 2007

Underwriters Laboratories was proud to host an industry workshop and seminar at the Long Beach/Los Angeles Port of United States Customs and Border Protection on September 6, 2007. Attendees included more than 25 representatives of various industry and retail associations including Wal-Mart, Target, Costco, Lowes, Eaton Corporation, and others. Among the presenters were Port Director Bonnie Lemert, UL’s Vice President, Global Industrial Sector - Bill Colavecchio and UL’s Vice President Anti-Counterfeiting Operations - Brian Monks. In addition, Marjorie Ottenville and Elva Muneton of US Customs and Border Protection, Clark Silcox of NEMA, Kris Buckner of Investigative Consultants, and Jerry Wald from Ernst and Young participated in panel discussions and break out question and answer sessions. The workshop concluded with a tour of the Long Beach port area and a visit to a clearing warehouse where samples taken from shipping containers are off loaded and examined by US Customs and Border Protection import specialists and officers in their detection of counterfeit products.
NYPD executed a search warrant at Trisonic in Queens, NY. The warrant was executed after a yearlong operation funded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Anti-Counterfeiting Task Force. A tractor-trailer container of counterfeit nightlights and power strips were seized. No arrests were made.

August 2007

ACO participated in a training seminar for the New York City Mayor's Special Enforcement Unit. This unit is able to seize property that is being used to warehouse and distribute counterfeit products.
UL's Anti-Counterfeiting Operations participated in the Standards Engineering Society's 56th annual conference held in San Francisco, CA August 20-21, 2007. The conference was hosted by the Standards Engineering Society and the International Federation of Standards Users and was entitled "Standards-The Bridge to Global Markets." UL's Bob Crane was a speaker and panelist and addressed the conference on the subject "The Growing Threat and Danger of Counterfeit Products". Over 200 people were in attendance; the attendees included representatives from government agencies, company managers, and individuals involved with various activities relating to the development and writing of Global Standards.

July 2007

UL's Andy Vourlos conducted a televideo training seminar at Brookhaven National Laboratory for 14 Department of Energy offices around the U.S. at the request of DoE's headquarters in Washington D.C. This training was a result of UL's Anti-Counterfeiting Operations work with the Los Alamos National Laboratory's counterfeit product investigations department to assist in the identification of suspect counterfeit products in DoE contracted projects.

June 2007

UL ACO conducted an investigation of 28 dollar-type stores in the Bronx, NY, as part of a project with the Bronx District Attorney's office. When counterfeit products were found, cease and desist notices were hand served by hired investigators. Follow-ups to these locations found that counterfeit merchandise was no longer being sold.

May 2007

UL's Andy Vourlos conducted a presentation for the first fire marshals graduating class of 2007 in Brooklyn, NY. UL ACO was also a presenter at an ICE Intellectual Property Seminar held in Chicago.

April 2007

UL's Andy Vourlos presented at the Suffolk County Fire Marshals meeting in Yaphank, NY on the potential hazards associated with counterfeit electrical products.

March 2007

UL's Andy Vourlos presented at the Fire Safety Educators meeting in Port Jefferson, NY on the potential hazards associated with counterfeit electrical products.

February 2007

UL ACO provided training to the ICE Eldorado Task Force in New York City.

January 2007

ACO participated in the anti-counterfeiting seminars that provided training to law enforcement agenices that included the Nassau County Police Department (NY) and U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) Special Agents in Northern and Southern California.